Hello All,

I've been away quite awhile. Lots of ugly things going on but so what, we all deal with that , eh?

This BP Oil Spill is going to be the absolute biggest ecological event in our life times, save a nuclear war or the New Madrid fault cracks open sends the Mississippi up-current.

Its not freshwater and its not so much freshwater fish, but a lot of you out there know an awful lot about fish....PERIOD! It doesn't have to be a BP bashing thread as when this is all over, BP will probably still be in GOM and we will still be buying their products knowingly or not.

Do you think you can break protocol and open a discussion on the impact of this event?
My reasons are selfish. I live down here. My friends and associates work these waters and the pictures you see on TV are mild compared to the real damage.

I;d like a place to bounce questions around so i can at least have something to say to my buddies who have no computers, much less even know what to ask . If you know me or anything about me you knwo it is NOT my way to try and look intelligent at YOUR expense. We just want answers and in the biology dept. they seem to be mired down in red tape.

They are gearing up this massive study that will take weeks or months to corroberate info. I have a feeling YOU ALL are a lot faster with answers or even GOOD GUESSES.

Your call. No offense taken if its a "NO".
Greg

Sure, I'm all for it. I was on Dauphin Island the day before the first tar balls beached there, and I hope it wasn't the last time I see it in good condition. You're right that we're facing a catastrophic situation in the Gulf. The entire food web is at risk from direct contact with crude oil fractions and also at risk from the creation of large anoxic pockets from the interactions of bacteria with the oil, and also unknown effects from denser fractions of petroleum settling in deep areas of the Gulf. 15% of the U.S. food supply comes from the Gulf, so why should we worry? Like I said before, drill, baby, drill.

Thank you.

I'll check back and see if and when its a go. There is a whole lot of areas to discuss. Not even the great Cousteau ever envisioned this much of a mess.

Greg

one thing i have not even heard discussed is the seeding of oil eating bacteria. does anyone know any thing about this?

also i would like to hear some of the memberships thoughts about the bounce back time for the northern gulf coast region specifically the Louisiana Mississippi River marsh area. My thoughts are probably 10 years, 5 if we get a major hurricane this year or next.(my idea being that the oil will be washed out to see where it will be further dispersed)

Greg,

I don't see a topic on this spill breaks protocol in any way.
I just ask two things of members and staff.
1. Please refrain from turning this into a political bashing event. Including the actions (or lack thereof) of the current or previous administrations.
2. Allow me to move this topic to the Conservation and Ethics portion of the forum where I believe it belongs.

Just got back from there....
All I'm going to say is I'm sick and maybe still in shock. What your seeing on the news is not what is really happening. It is a lot worse...What is occurring is outright total ecologic, cultural and economic devastation for all areas affected.

Greg,

I don't see a topic on this spill breaks protocol in any way.
I just ask two things of the members and staff.
1. Please refrain from turning this into a political bashing event. Including the actions (or lack thereof) of the current or previous administrations.
2. Allow me to move this topic to the Conservation and Ethics portion of the forum where I believe it belongs.

Wow, I am with you, but staying non political will be tough, primarily because "lack thereof" I would like to see the same zest that we know our gov is capable of with with the passage of recent bills, go into solving this problem. This should be reason to put some able bodied people to work.
I recently found this low tech solution that relies on local natural resources. This could put alot of guys to work, stimulate a local economy, and greatly help this oil spill problem without the use of surfactants that are near as toxic as the oil itself. No, it won't stop the leak, but it sure could help the cleanup in the meantime.

Greg,

I don't see a topic on this spill breaks protocol in any way.
I just ask two things of members and staff.
1. Please refrain from turning this into a political bashing event. Including the actions (or lack thereof) of the current or previous administrations.
2. Allow me to move this topic to the Conservation and Ethics portion of the forum where I believe it belongs.

My thoughts exactly.
No need to do a blame game as that is already prevalent in the news.

There are going to be an assortment of questions, mostly biological but some involving chemistry and forestry as well .

• 
  
• grasses
• soil
• pelagic fishes
• benthic fishes
• mussels/clams
• water quality and chemistry involving crude
• dispersants in water and their affect on marine life
• long term possibilities
• interaction of migrant fish and birds carrying contaminated fish into the freshwater environs
• mutations
• diseases
• recovery after the spill ceases
• ..... and information on plume movements by anyone knowing or having contact with reputable sources

[/list]

The spill is happening. The amount of crude in the water seems to be much greater than what was reported.
The time to act on protecting the coast is almost past, now its time to start dealing with the aftermath.
There are numerous folks on this forum that have information, contacts or both that can give Joe 6 Pack explanations.
I hope they come forth with their opinions and thoughts. Louisiana's estuaries, nurseries and rookeries are being hit very hard and some feel they may not come back for years. No doom and gloom just a fact of nature.....oil and marine creatures do not mix well.

The thoughts are also about species of fish that are now plentiful in these marshes but may wind up as endangered.


Many Thanks.

I will start the questioning off if you all say its a "go".


Greg

Wow, I am with you, but staying non political will be tough, primarily because "lack thereof" I would like to see the same zest that we know our gov is capable of with with the passage of recent bills, go into solving this problem. This should be reason to put some able bodied people to work.
I recently found this low tech solution that relies on local natural resources. This could put alot of guys to work, stimulate a local economy, and greatly help this oil spill problem without the use of surfactants that are near as toxic as the oil itself. No, it won't stop the leak, but it sure could help the cleanup in the meantime.

Yes it works. But did you see how much it took for just a small amount of oil.
Not criticizing, just making an observation. There are 3700 ideas sent in as of last week. We all believe that few if any were reviewed.

nm

Just got back from there....
All I'm going to say is I'm sick and maybe still in shock. What your seeing on the news is not what is really happening. It is a lot worse...What is occurring is outright total ecologic, cultural and economic devastation for all areas affected.

There also seems to be news black out. Few pictures are coming in. They are showing old clips and every news caster is either at the River walk in N.O., Fort Jackson in Venice or at the beach in Grand Isle.

one thing i have not even heard discussed is the seeding of oil eating bacteria. does anyone know any thing about this?

also i would like to hear some of the memberships thoughts about the bounce back time for the northern gulf coast region specifically the Louisiana Mississippi River marsh area. My thoughts are probably 10 years, 5 if we get a major hurricane this year or next.(my idea being that the oil will be washed out to see where it will be further dispersed)

Some guy showed up a week ago stating he had hundreds of gallons of man made oil eating microbes that were not as toxic as the dispersant used now....... BP execs said it wasn't in sufficient quantiies to use.

one thing i have not even heard discussed is the seeding of oil eating bacteria. does anyone know any thing about this?

also i would like to hear some of the memberships thoughts about the bounce back time for the northern gulf coast region specifically the Louisiana Mississippi River marsh area. My thoughts are probably 10 years, 5 if we get a major hurricane this year or next.(my idea being that the oil will be washed out to see where it will be further dispersed)

The oil is in the coastal marsh. A hurricane will churn up the stuff offshore and yes disperse it.....but a 15' tidal surge will bring it into the upper marsh, cattle grazing lands and sugar cane farms.

Can we take a look at something simple to start:

what about YOY fish, shrimp larvae, Oyster spat and marine eggs ( either floating or in sacs).

Your ideas on what will happen and for how long?
A well educated guess is acceptable.

Sure, I'm all for it. I was on Dauphin Island the day before the first tar balls beached there, and I hope it wasn't the last time I see it in good condition. You're right that we're facing a catastrophic situation in the Gulf. The entire food web is at risk from direct contact with crude oil fractions and also at risk from the creation of large anoxic pockets from the interactions of bacteria with the oil, and also unknown effects from denser fractions of petroleum settling in deep areas of the Gulf. 15% of the U.S. food supply comes from the Gulf, so why should we worry? Like I said before, drill, baby, drill.

I was told 80% of the GOM fish spawn in the La. coastal estuary. Is this true??

I was told 80% of the GOM fish spawn in the La. coastal estuary. Is this true??

It might not be 80% in the estuary per se, but most fish species will spawn at least near the estuary in shallow waters that will be (and probably are) badly affected by oil. Most of the commercially important invert species are dependent on estuaries as nurseries. I would guess that this year's generation of a lot of aquatic species in that area is pretty much gone either from direct exposure to oil, or from starvation as the food web collapses. Most species will be able to recolonize the area, but that assumes that the entire food web is able to restart from bacteria through microplankton through turtles and sharks. The truth is that it's all an open-air experiment. We don't have a clear idea of how much oil will be released ultimately, and there are various near-term jokers like having a hurricane or two go through the area this season (or not). I think we're looking at decades for anything like recovery.

Several people mentioned having been there recently. Do you have any pictures?

Just got back from there....
All I'm going to say is I'm sick and maybe still in shock. What your seeing on the news is not what is really happening. It is a lot worse...What is occurring is outright total ecologic, cultural and economic devastation for all areas affected.

it is far more wide spread then any one could believe, family just got back from a air trip to las vegas they said from the air it is just sad to see and its not on the news just how far it has gone.mother nature will have to fix this mess.

Edited by CATfishTONY, 01 June 2010 - 05:07 AM.

It might not be 80% in the estuary per se, but most fish species will spawn at least near the estuary in shallow waters that will be (and probably are) badly affected by oil. Most of the commercially important invert species are dependent on estuaries as nurseries. I would guess that this year's generation of a lot of aquatic species in that area is pretty much gone either from direct exposure to oil, or from starvation as the food web collapses. Most species will be able to recolonize the area, but that assumes that the entire food web is able to restart from bacteria through microplankton through turtles and sharks. The truth is that it's all an open-air experiment. We don't have a clear idea of how much oil will be released ultimately, and there are various near-term jokers like having a hurricane or two go through the area this season (or not). I think we're looking at decades for anything like recovery.

Question:

• What is a microplankton and how small is it? (My ignorance; is it a zooplankton or phytoplankton)
• Micro plankton comes in on the turtles and sharks ( pelagics) and deposits in the estuaries?
• If so, what would be the micro plankton's food requirements?
• Along with this question would be asked, if the sunlight breaks down the surface oil ( sheen and/or globs) but the benthic area is still partially covered in crude, can this bacteria/micro plankton still sirvive?

Thank you.

Just got back from there....
All I'm going to say is I'm sick and maybe still in shock. What your seeing on the news is not what is really happening. It is a lot worse...What is occurring is outright total ecologic, cultural and economic devastation for all areas affected.

Where were you stationed at?
How did you enjoy our Louisiana Springtime weather?

what exactly is in crude oil that kills marine life? Sounds simplistic but its a question I hear a lot.
Another is , "how long can the toxicity last?"
I was told that sunlight breaks crude down but then what??? is whatever is left still toxic?